Historical trauma

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Historical trauma or collective trauma refers to the cumulative emotional harm of an individual or generation caused by a traumatic experience or event.

According to its advocates, collective trauma evokes a variety of responses, most prominently through substance abuse, which is used as a vehicle for attempting to numb pain. This model seeks to use this to explain other self-destructive behavior, such as suicidal thoughts and gestures, depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, anger, violence, and difficulty recognizing and expressing emotions. Many historians and scholars believe the manifestations of violence and abuse in certain communities are directly associated with the unresolved grief that accompanies continued trauma.^[1]

Historical trauma, and its manifestations, are seen as an example of transgenerational trauma (though the existence of transgenerational trauma itself is disputed). For example, a pattern of paternal abandonment of a child might be seen across three generations,^[2] or the actions of an abusive parent might be seen in continued abuse across generations. These manifestations can also stem from the trauma of events, such as the witnessing of war, genocide, or death. For these populations that have witnessed these mass level traumas, several generations later these populations tend to have higher rates of disease.^[3]